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Tamara Drewe [2010]

The weirdest thing about “Tamara Drewe” is that the story is about everyone else except her. Of course she plays a very important role, but I didn’t care for her as much as I did for the people surrounding her. The film breaks the notion of a quiet and sleepy town in the English countryside. Underneath this seemingly close community lies an undelining suspicion. Everyone is in everyone else’s business, and Tamara’s presence only helps fuel the tension. We are told that she used to live in this small town during her teenage years. Now grown up, she is back to restore and sell the house that she grew up in. But her sudden appearance in this quiet little town leads to a series of events that will change the lives of several local people. Men are suddenly obsessed with her beauty, while women are often jealous and even angry because of her. The film eases its dark themes with its clever use of humour. Every character is just as weird and quirky as the next one, but it is British humour afterall, and one shouldn’t expect anything less. So why wasn’t I entirely satisfied by it? Well I guess technically, the film looks good. The performances are first rate, and there’s plenty to enjoy here. But the main problem is that the movie doesn’t know when to play it serious and when not to. It sort of bounces back in forth, but never really succeeds in hitting all the right notes. Blame it on lazy writing I guess. Either way, it’s still a fun ride, and certainly worth watching, especially if you’re into indie British films. But the moral of the story? Be damned if I knew.